For the third consecutive year, Athens Academy is pleased to benefit from the generosity of the Besharat Arts Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing art into schools around the country. According to their website, their goal is to “bring art to schools in the hope that daily contact with thought-provoking art will help children acquire a deeper level of understanding and empathy for our planet and its people.”

Dozens of photographs from world-famous photographers adorn the walls of the school’s Harrison Center for the Arts and Preschool, the Lower School Media Center, the Drew Swan Building for Middle School, and the Bertelsmann Building, which houses the Middle and Upper School Media Center.

Preschool Director Colleen Burwell shares, “When the photographs were first displayed in our building, there was a group of young students that would arrive at school early once a week to spend time looking and talking about each photograph. They would look for commonalities like emotions or animals and differences in landscape and global locations.” She continues, “Having young students elect to spend time before school on a self-guided adventure through these images and conversations with friends speaks volumes of the images’ impact.”

According to founder Massoud Besharat, “The Foundation aims to encourage children throughout the world to follow the path of human decency and have sympathy and compassion for those less fortunate. All human beings require love, security, acceptance, and belonging.”

Athens Academy Middle School Director Jeff Stachura says, “Massoud Besharat included a statement with the photos, part of which reads, ‘If you see differences in the form of race, color, language and religion, it is because of the randomness of birth. But we all have the same needs...We encourage you to learn from this early stage of your life how to empathize with others...’ I'm pleased to share that our art is having exactly the intention Mr. Besharat hoped it would.”

Athens Academy is an independent, co-educational school for students in K3 through 12th grade, located on a beautiful 152-acre campus in Northeast Georgia. Now in its 56th year, Athens Academy pursues its mission of “excellence with honor” through academics, athletics, fine arts, and service and leadership. Ranked the #1 private school in Athens, #9 college prep school in the state of Georgia, and #1 private school in Northeast Georgia (Niche.com).